, lest God should
visit the German nation with His judgment. A severe edict was
published against him by the authority of the Diet, and he was deprived
of all the privileges he enjoyed as a subject of the Empire.
Furthermore, it was forbidden for any prince to harbour or protect him,
and his person was to be seized as soon as the safe-conduct for the
journey had expired.

As Luther returned to Wittenberg, a band of horsemen took him and
carried him off to the strong castle of Wartburg, where he was lodged
in the disguise of a knight. It was a ruse of the Elector of Saxony to
save him from the storm he had roused by his behaviour at the Diet.
Imprisonment was not irksome, and the retreat was pleasant enough after
the strife of years. He hunted in his character of gallant cavalier,
and always wore a sword. Much of his time was spent in {59}
translating the Scriptures into German, that knowledge might not be
denied even to the unlettered. Constant study made his imagination
very vivid, and the devil seemed to be constantly before him. He had
long conversations with Satan in person, as he believed, and decided
that the best way to get rid of him was by gibes and mockery. One
night his bed shook with the violent agitation caused by the rattling
of some hazel nuts against each other after they had felt the
inspiration of the Evil One! On another occasion a diabolical moth
buzzed round him, preventing close attention to his labours. He hurled
an inkstand at the intruder, staining the wall of the chamber with a
mark that remained there through centuries.

During this confinement, Luther's opinions gained ground in Saxony.
The University of Wittenberg made several alterations in the form of
Church worship, abolishing, in particular, the celebration of private
masses for the souls of the dead. Two events counteracted the pleasure
of the reformer when the news came to him. He was told that the
ancient University of Paris had condemned his doctrines, and that Henry
VIII of England had written a reply to one of his books, so ably that
the Pope had been delighted to confer on him the title of Defender of
the Faith.

In 1522, Luther returned to Wittenberg, enjoying a harmless jest at
Jena by the way. There his disguise of red mantle and doublet so
deceived fellow-travellers that they told him their intention of going
to see Martin Luther return, without realizing that they were speaking
to the great reformer!

His ne